________________________________________________________________________Richard S. Kem
Q:
Was there any resistance in Belgium or the Netherlands to building these storage sites in their
countries? Was that a sensitive issue?
A:
From the governmental and NATO perspective, I saw none at all. There may have been
late--I left before all things were wrapped.
There were some community folks who had the old NIMBY--"not in my back yard"--
feeling, that local community reaction to some of the planned storage sites. Many of them
were at places, though, that had low employment and out-of-the-way areas. I think nationally
they recognized the obvious: that if they were going to be for this rapid reinforcement
initiative, they each ought to take one division set of storage sites.
Now, at the end of this time frame, about April or so, General Haig asked us to come lay out
the whole program for him. He invited senior SHAPE staffers and Air Force types, and we
laid out the whole program--that is, theater reserve, ammunition, and rapid reinforcement.
We were planning to use some airfields in Belgium that were being given up by SHAPE's air
component. I was the briefer. General Heiberg, Walt Kastenmayer, and I had flown up. It
went over pretty well, but I recall one Belgian general from the NATO air component
standing up, saying, "I don't think we should use those airfields. We might want to have
them available for standbys, for extra airfields." General Haig turned and rather pointedly
said, "That was my thought a year ago, and I asked you all if there was a reason to keep them.
No one had a reason, so we excessed them. Where were you then? Now they're excessed.
We're going to use them for this." It was a rather decisive moment.
Q:
Was EUD going to be responsible for the construction of the facilities for all of these
programs at all of these sites?
A:
Yes. I say that, recognizing that we used EUD as our agent either to construct or as our pass
through to the German construction agency. Almost all of the construction in Germany was
done by German construction agencies, but EUD was our contact and agent.
Q:
So, that was a big program for EUD--or at least the prospect for them during the late '70s,
early '80s. Quite a few storage facilities.
A:
Yes.
Q:
Maybe we could turn to another program that I'm not sure that your office would have been
responsible for--the long-range security program that was going on at this time. Was this in
your area of responsibility?
A:
Yes and no. What I mean is that, as I described before, certain things were in the policy,
programming, budgeting stage, and then there was the execution stage. The long-range
security program had passed out of the first part, was now a program being executed. So,
ISAE was really monitoring and working with EUD on the construction at the various sites. I
did attend some meetings. There was a lot of consternation, some policy issues and
everything else, but it was basically ISAE from the standpoint of USAREUR headquarters
that was managing the program with EUD.
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